tyre pressure – Pulpaddict

Five motoring maintenance tips to ensure a smooth Easter getaway

With Easter and spring-time staycations on the horizon, it’s easy to get distracted by packing and forget the importance of checking your vehicle and its tyres ahead of a long journey.

We’ve teamed up with the experts at leading mid-range tyre brand, Davanti Tyres, to recommended these five maintenance checks to carry out before you set off on your road trip.

1. Check your tyre pressure and unusual wear and tear

It is recommended that you check your tyre pressures once a month as standard, so if you haven’t checked in the weeks before your trip, take the time to do so now.

Tyres can quickly become deflated if they aren’t checked regularly, and this can result in excessive and uneven wearing of the tread. Additionally, any visible perforation, cut or deformation has the potential to render the tyre unsafe to use so they must be checked thoroughly by a tyre professional if you find something unusual.

2. Make sure there is enough tread

This improves your grip, the vehicle’s handling, and – ultimately – your safety. The 20p test is a simple, quick, and easy way of checking the tyre tread of your car’s wheels. Just take a 20p coin and insert it into the tread grooves on the tyre. If you can’t see the outer band on the coin, your tyres are above the legal limit.

3. Don’t overload your car

We’re all guilty of overpacking, but remember, your vehicle’s tyres are doing the hard work of supporting the total weight of the vehicle and withstanding deformations, speed, and heat, so be mindful of how much you’re taking with you.

If you do need to carry a heavier load than normal, adjust the tyre pressure accordingly, which can be found in the car’s documentation.

4. Light up your holiday

Before you set off, do a quick check of all the lights on your vehicle. For example, turn on your headlights when you’re parked in front of a flat surface and check that both headlights are working properly and well-positioned, as well as checking indicator and parking lights.

5. Engine oil

The oil in your vehicle’s engine serves a whole slew of functions: it lubricates the moving parts, helps act as a sealant against debris, cools the engine, reduces wear and tear, and helps prevent engine corrosion.

It’s well worth taking that extra 10 minutes to ensure your oil level is at the right level ready for your road trip.

As Peter Cross – General Manager, Davanti Tyres – says: “Regular car maintenance and tyre checks are important. If you ensure any small issues are resolved quickly, it stops a small issue becoming a bigger problem and putting a dampener on any staycations.”

Why motorists will waste a million litres of fuel this Easter

More than one in 10 drivers will be setting off on their Easter getaway with incorrectly inflated tyres – leading to more than 1 MILLION litres of wasted fuel, according to new research.

Having incorrectly inflated tyres can have a significant impact on how fuel-efficient a car is, affecting fuel consumption by up to 3%.

The experts at Halfords have crunched the numbers to work out just how much this is going to cost motorists this Easter – and how much fuel is being wasted.

Brits will drive a total of 2.7 billion miles this Easter – but 300 million of them will be by vehicles with incorrectly inflated tyres.

Nine in 10 drivers (88%) will be hitting the roads this bank holiday weekend – driving an average of 68.5 miles each. Based upon the 39 million Brits who have a driving licence, this means that 2.7 billion miles are set to be driven.

However, when they set off, more than one in 10 (11%) of those going away say that they will not have topped their tyres up with air in four months or more – and do not plan to do so before they leave.

Given the average tyre loses around 1 PSI of pressure each month, this means they will likely be underinflated – reducing the fuel efficiency of the entire car.

Therefore, out of the 2.7 billion miles being driven this Easter Bank Holiday, 293,701,792 of these miles will be by vehicles with underinflated tyres.

How much money and fuel is being wasted?

Based on current fuel prices and average fuel consumption in UK cars, it costs 17.66p in fuel for every mile driven. This means that those with underinflated tyres will be spending £51 million to fuel their car.

But given that their incorrectly inflated tyres will be impacting their efficiency by around three per cent, they will be wasting £1.5 million worth of fuel – a massive 1,051,373 litres.

Why do under-inflated tyres impact fuel consumption – and what are the other dangers?

Underinflated tyres have an increased footprint on the road, which in turn increases friction, and as such, makes them less efficient. This isn’t the only issue – underinflated tyres can also cause overheating, which can lead to premature wear, tread separation, and eventually even a blowout.

Motorists affected by the cost of living crisis

Gareth Herincx

10 hours ago
Auto News

More than one in three drivers have cut down on car journeys since beginning of the year as the cost of living crisis begins to bite, according to new research.

A study for Kwik Fit, the UK’s leading automotive servicing and repair company, reveals that 35% of drivers have cut down on car journeys they describe as “non-essential”.

Those driving petrol or diesel cars are twice as likely to have cut down on these journeys compared to drivers of electric vehicles (EVs) or hybrids (40% vs 22% respectively).

More than one in five drivers (21%) say they have consciously tried to drive more smoothly or less aggressively, with 14% say they have driven more slowly on all their journeys and 17% saying they have done so on some journeys.

In all, seven in 10 (69%) motorists have changed their behaviour since the beginning of 2022.

The Kwik Fit research also found that 17% of drivers of EVs or hybrids have swapped from a diesel or petrol car this year.

Some car owners have made an even more dramatic switch, with 4% saying they have sold their car this year and not replaced it.

The research findings highlight that the impact of rising costs is not uniform across different groups – drivers under 35 are a staggering eight times more likely to have sold their car and not replaced it than drivers over 55.

Michelin Compact 'Top Up' Digital Tyre Inflator

The increasing cost of motoring has prompted some drivers to take up good motoring maintenance habits with 10% saying they have started regularly checking their tyre pressures, while a slightly higher proportion (11%) have emptied their car boot of any heavy items and 3% of drivers have removed roof racks, bars or bike racks which they normally keep permanently on their car.

“We would encourage all motorists to make sure their car is running as efficiently as possible and to especially take the measures that cost nothing – ensure that their tyres are at the correct pressure and that the car is not suffering from unnecessary weight in the boot or drag on the roof,” said Roger Grigg of Kwik Fit.

“Seemingly small measures can have a big impact on fuel consumption and of course, having the correct tyre pressure will also help prolong the life of a tyre by reducing premature wear.”

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Essential winter tyre care tips

Gareth Herincx

19 hours ago
Auto Blog

With extreme weather just around the corner it’s more important than ever to make sure your tyes are in tip-top condition.

We’ve teamed up with Goodyear to help you stay safe on the roads over the winter with these five tips…

1) Check your pressures regularly
It’s important to regularly check your tyre pressures throughout the winter. Lower temperatures can cause tyre pressures to drop, meaning the contact patch will be larger and making it more difficult to gain traction on snow and ice. Always run your tyres to the manufacturer’s recommended PSI or BAR.

2) Tread carefully
Having adequate tread depth is essential, whatever the weather. However, when your tyres are trying to grip wet and icy roads, it’s even more important that they have suitable tread. The legal limit for minimum tread depth is 1.6mm, across three-quarters of the tread and around the entire circumference of the tyre. As well as helping your tyres grip the road more effectively throughout the winter months, regular checks to keep your tread above the legal limit can help to avoid three penalty points and a hefty fine.

3) Consider fitting winter or all-season tyres
Most cars are fitted with summer tyres as standard, as opposed to winter or all-season tyres like Goodyear’s Vector 4Seasons Gen-3. However, the compound on summer tyres remains hard in cold temperatures, whereas a winter or all-season tyre retains its pliability and moulds to the shape of the road to retain grip. As a result, the sipes in the tread design of a winter or all season tyre will grip to snowy and icy roads much more effectively. Most manufacturers will recommend using winter tyres in temperatures below 7°C.

4) Know your braking distances
If you’re using summer tyres in winter conditions, you will need to re-evaluate your braking distances. Research from the British Tyre Manufacturers Association (BTMA) shows that when braking on icy roads at 20mph, a car fitted with winter tyres will come to a rest after 57m, while summer tyres will keep going for as far as 68m. Regardless of what kind of tyres they’re using, it’s vital that drivers keep a safe distance from the vehicle in front.

5) How does the tyre look?
While you should carry out proven checks on your tyre pressures and tread, it’s also important to simply look for cosmetic damage. Look for rips, tears or bulges before setting off and make sure to check your pressure, especially if your car hasn’t moved for a few days.

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